The army returns to seven Swedish cities

– Getting the regiment back is a lot of fun for Sollefteå, says Emelie Källgren.

Pet Nera, a German shepherd dog who will soon have puppies. Emelie is a civilian employee as a dog trainer in the only current military activity in Sollefteå: the Swedish Armed Forces dog breeding station with 16 employees.

We are between red wooden buildings and yellow plastered barracks that once belonged to the I 21st Västernorrland regiment, disbanded in 2000. But now, 21 years later, the regiment will be reborn with 120 new jobs.

Two months ago the Riksdag decided it. The reason is that Sweden is arming itself and the military war organization is expanding. By 2025, recruit training will nearly double to 8,000 per year. Therefore, units are needed again in seven cities that were once military (see graphic at the end of the text).

It’s a great event for Sollefteå, a municipality with 19,000 inhabitants in the center of Västernorrland county. The city is beautifully situated along the Ångermanälven river, surrounded by mountains.

– This establishment means a lot. It will be a vitamin injection for the city, absolutely. It is clear that it also has a psychological effect. Sollefteå is a city of defense forces, I think it is in our DNA in a way, says the young city councilor, Johan Andersson (C), 33 years old.

During the Cold War, Sollefteå was called “a ski slope between two regiments”.

It refers to Sollefteå’s centennial era as a military town. During the Cold War, 600 defense employees trained 1,400 recruits a year to defend Norrland. Sollefteå was called “a ski slope between two regiments”.

– There are those who still joke about it. Today we can offer a modern and pleasant society, says Johan Andersson.

But investing in Sollefteå has been controversial. Before the Riksdag’s decision, there was opposition from the Armed Forces and from the state owner, the Swedish Fortifications Agency. Instead, the two authorities wanted to invest in existing places of education. Mainly in Östersund, where National Guard soldiers are currently trained, this type of training is lacking in Sollefteå.

Defense politicians agreed to restart I 21 in Sollefteå, but with a subordinate department, the Field Hunter Corps, in Östersund. In each city a battalion will be trained (400-800 soldiers).

There won’t be much military activity in Sollefteå for the next two to three years. But on the other hand, the Sollefteå staff will lead the field hunting corps in Östersund.

“We want to set the highest speed and really deliver what the policy has ordered,” Lieutenant General Johan Svensson tells DN by phone.

As a production manager for the Armed Forces, he leads the work with all the new establishments from Headquarters. But add:

– There will not be so much military activity in Sollefteå in the next two or three years. But on the other hand, the Sollefteå staff will lead the field hunting corps in Östersund.

When the training itself of the 100-250 recruits / years in Sollefteå to start is therefore very unclear. One reason is that the municipality and defense authorities have completely different views on how the old buildings and the I 21 area can be used.

The town hall guides us in the area of ​​the regiment, which is dominated by four barracks from the early 20th century. We are entering one of them, and generations of recruits would recognize each other here. There are solid granite staircases, tile floors in the hallways, and linoleum floors in the dwelling big enough for 16 soldiers. The wet rooms and bathrooms were renovated in the 1990s.

There is also an engine area with a roadmap for armored vehicles, a laundromat and a modern workshop from 1994. All were sold in 2016 by the state real estate company Vasallen for 120 million SEK to a quarter – the real estate company NP 3.

The barracks is currently used as a secondary school (among other things, by the biathlon secondary school that benefits from the building’s arsenal of weapons) until construction of an ongoing school is completed. Other buildings are used as canteens, nurseries and homes. Next door is a new bathhouse.

At the Tjärnmyren shooting range There is a red painted wooden building with a dining room. There we meet real estate engineer Johan Lignell from the Swedish Fortifications Agency who will install geothermal heating.

– It’s fun with the regiment. I was present at the closing, but now I live in Umeå. Maybe I’ll move in here with the family, says Johan Lignell.

The possibility of using these buildings was a compelling argument when defense politicians in 2020 agreed to invest in Sollefteå.

The municipality is ready to go far and quickly move away other activities so that the Armed Forces have freedom of movement. NP 3 sets for DN that it is open to everything from renting to selling.

But where the municipality sees opportunities, the defense authorities see difficulties. The message on the ground is that “you want to build everything new.”

– We have the barracks, we have the technology area, we have environmentally proven firing ranges. So of course we want them to take advantage of what is available and make it as profitable as possible. It has been one of our greatest strengths, says City Councilor Johan Andersson.

But where the municipality sees opportunities, the defense authorities see difficulties. The message on the ground is that they “want to build everything new,” according to various DN sources. Something that confirms General Johan Svensson.

– Yes, but we haven’t seen where we finally land. It can be said that in the area of ​​the old regiment it is difficult to find a rational solution where one hundred recruits can be trained with heavy vehicles, weapons and washing corridors and all that that entails. As seen with nursery and housing.

Does the municipality say they can move them if necessary?

– If they can do that, we will gladly accept that discussion, answers Johan Svensson.

Sollefteå politicians consider that it would be pure destruction of capital not to use existing buildings. They know after a study visit to Gotland. Everything there has been built new for the Gotland regiment reestablishment in 2018. So far, the cost is SEK 1.5 billion. This is confirmed by the Chief of Staff of the Gotland Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Hans Håkansson, during a telephone conversation.

– My assessment is that the same amount of money is needed before this regiment works. We may have a barracks and a mess hall in five years, eight years after the decision to re-establish it. It can’t be reasonable, says Hans Håkansson.

Doing the same in Sollefteå worries Hans Pahlin, who is the municipality’s project manager. He was a former officer on I 21 and we ended the visit in Hallstaberget with a wonderful view of Sollefteå:

– It is possible to get started quickly with today’s facilities with recruiting training in 2022, or before 2023. We have more than 40 officers and former defense employees who want to work here and recruiting is important. If the Armed Forces are aiming to build a completely new regiment area on the firing range, it will be expensive and time consuming, warns Hans Pahlin.

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